The International Sleeps w/ the Fishes...

The International golf tournament is no longer a tour event. The PGA will not stop in Colorado this year, and it's quite sad to see this event go. Where was the headlining sponsor, the die-hard golf fan, the Colorado sports community? I'm scratching my head trying to figure out how this announcement missed becoming a topic of conversation with the local media. This happened in February, and I didn't hear a thing about it. I was going to the website to check out dates and who had committed to play in the tournament and that was no where to be found. Look at this site, and tell me it doesn't make you sad: The International Where have all the golfers gone? I know they're out there, I know they're everywhere. Don't believe me? Just try and get a tee-time in Colorado the day before a nice weekend. Why do you think they advertise those golf trips to South Carolina, Vegas, and even Nebraska? Yeah, I'm telling you there are golfers aplenty in this state. Enough to support at least one PGA tour event per year. Does it get better than 4 days of watching the best golfers in the game hit the little white ball further than they do at any other tour stop? What about the quirky modified Stableford scoring system? Double bogey or worse gets you -3, and absolutely anyone can go out and fire a -54 for 18 holes! No more busing and walking around Castle Pines. Who won't miss drinkin' beers and yelling "You da Man!" at Tom Pernice Jr.? I mean come on, we took it for granted in most of its 21 years, and now look what happened. Say it ain't so. Colorado is certainly going to miss The International, and the PGA will miss coming to town. I guess we'll have to adjust to regular scoring and head South to Phoenix to watch a golf tournament from here on out. If you want to be part of a gallery and follow, Ernie, Vijay, Davis, Phil, or even Phil's wife, you're going to have to travel elsewhere or attempt to simulate it from your couch. In the end, I guess it wasn't profitable enough and the event couldn't get a large enough sponsor or sponsors. Many past sponsors names come to mind, but the PGA must be bigger business and more exclusive than we knew. $5.5 million in prize money last year, and The International never seemed to hit it's stride. There were plenty of first rate golfers coming to Colorado, but they never could find the right tour date to entice everybody. A last look at the Modified Stableford Scoring System Double bogey or worse = -3 Bogey = -1 point Par = 0 points Birdie = 2 points Eagle = 5 points Double eagle = 8 points